This invention relates to an endoscope apparatus which is provided with a microwave irradiator to treat an affected coeliac tissue of a living body such as a cancerous tumor by emitting microwaves to the affected portion.
A known effective medical treatment of a tumor grown in a living body is based on thermal extermination. With a conventional endoscope apparatus applying this medical treatment process, hot air or water is ejected on a tumor from an outlet port provided at the distal end portion of the endoscope. When contacted by ejected hot air or water, the tumor perishes. Later, the hot air or water is recovered into the endoscope body through an inlet also formed at the distal end portion of the endoscope.
Where a tumor is exposed on the surface of a living tissue, the conventional endoscope arranged as described above enables the tumor to be medically treated with good effect. However, a normal living tissue is maintained at a prescribed coeliac temperature by a self-adjusting system, that is, blood circulation through the tissue. Where, therefore, a tumor happens to be grown under the normal tissue, then the hot air or water can not reach the interior of the living tissue where the tumor is produced, resulting in the failure to effectively treat a tumor in a living tissue due to the fact that proper heating of the tumor is not possible.
It may be contemplated to apply an endoscope type high frequency knife or endoscope type laser knife to thermally excise an affected, for example, tumor-contaminated tissue. However, these devices are originally developed to surgically excise the affected coeliac portion of a living body, and generally irradiate extremely high energy. Where, therefore, the high frequency or laser output is irradiated on a normal tissue by mistake, then the danger arises of unnecessarily damaging or exterminating a normal tissue. Consequently, the endoscope type high frequency knife or laser knife is not practically applicable for thermal medical treatment of an affected portion of a deep coeliac section.